b'Safety CSIA 21S o now that we see what may lie ahead for this summer, what does your heat illness preventionplanlooklike?Doyourely entirely on the OSHA Heat Tool App? Or do you go further than the app suggests? Do you place the burden of seeing that your employees comply withyourheatillnesspreventionprogramonthe site supervisor, or on each employee? For example, do you provide adequate water on the jobsite and expect your employees to drink it? If that is all you do, it is not enough! Unfortunately, many employers feel that their obligation to their employees ends after they have given them the tools to protect themselves but nothing could be further from the truth. You, as the employer, have full responsibility for the safety of your employees.While OSHA has been promising a heat illness preventionstandardforthepastseveralyears,a standard has not yet been promulgated. So, you will still be judged under the very broad interpretation of your obligation under the General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. In this current situation, I suggest you need to take whatever steps willbenecessarytoprotectyouremployeesfrom the adverse effects of working in a high heat index environment. Several highly placed individuals within the Occupational Safety and Health of Administration havestatedthatthissummer,whenevertheheatTool App, or the five steps recommended by NIOSH index exceeds 95, area directors will be directed toin 2012. Under these circumstances, you will need toCENTRAL STATES INSULATION ASSOCIATIONhave compliance officers begin inspecting targetedkeep a close eye on your employees and how they industries where the likelihood of serious injuries fromare weathering the high heat index environment to working in a high heat index environment is greatest.which they are exposed and adjusting the steps you Construction is one of those industries. Under theare taking to ensure their wellbeing.existing National Emphasis Program for heat illness prevention, OSHA can walk onto any jobsite at anyActing Secretary of Labor Julie Su has stated time, especially in one of those targeted industries,that OSHA plans to issue a proposed rule for heat and ask to see the employers heat illness preventionillnesspreventioninlateSeptember/earlyOctober plan.this year, with a final rule to be published before the end of this calendar year. So, at least for this summer, UndertheGeneralDutyClause,OSHAwillyou will be judged under the General Duty Clause, expectyoutotakefeasiblestepstoprotectyourunless you are in a state plan state with a heat illness employees from heat illness. Until we get a specificprevention standard, such as California. Regardless standard with required steps to be taken to protectof this, I think we can expect significant enforcement employees,youwillbejudgedonthoseactionsactions by OSHA this summer. whichOSHAconsiderstobefeasible.Rightnow, thosecanbedrawnfromtheOSHA/NIOSHHeatThe Heat Tool App is fairly simple to use, and continued on pg.22csiaonline.org'